Virtualization technology by which multiple tasks are integrated permits enhancement of the utilization efficiency of hardware resources including a processor, a memory, input/output units and the like. However, in architecting and restructuring a computer system, the requirements of the storage which the server manager desires to connect are notified to the storage manager, who executes the task to set a storage meeting those requirements. Since virtualization technology has made possible flexible architecting of a virtual server, it is desirable also to reduce the time taken to set the storage to be used by the virtual manager.
As a related art for realizing this desire, the Japanese Unexamined Patent Application No. 2010-97402 discloses a technique which dispenses with intervention by either the manager of storages to be connected to the server computer or the storage managing server. Thus, multiple disk volumes are made ready in the storage, and a dummy interface identifier is allocated to each disk volume in advance. The interface identifier may be, for instance, a World Wide Name (WWN) for host bus adapters (HBA) for use in identifying the host that can access the disk volume. By selecting an unused disk volume at the time of setting the virtual server and setting the WWN of the virtual HBA of the virtual server to replace the WWN allocated there, the virtual server and the disk volume to be allocated to it can be set at the same time.
Meanwhile, the Japanese Translation of Unexamined PCT Application No. 2009-536762 discloses a technique by which a disk volume of a physical computer is converted into virtual hardware of the host computer while the physical computer is in execution. A snapshot consistent with the file system of the physical computer is created, and transferred to a virtual hard disk file mounted on the host computer. Next, after so modifying information on actions related to the virtual hard disk file and operating system that they can function to boot the virtual computer with the host computer, the virtual hard disk file is unmounted from the host computer and used as a new disk volume for the virtual computer. There is a virtual disk file that causes an area managed by the host computer to appear to the virtual computer as a disk volume and the virtual computer to access the disk volume via the host computer. Here, the host computer can as well be deemed to have a function equivalent to that of a hypervisor (virtualization mechanism).